Christie’s 20th / 21st Century: London Evening Sale realised £81,980,050 / €97,556,260 / $107,147,925, selling 89% by lot and 96% by value. This is up 83% year on year (October 2023 20th/21st Century: London Evening Sale totalled £44,641,420).
Buyers by region were 50% from EMEA, 28% USA and 22% Asia, and bidders and buyers came from 23 countries. 33 of the 52 works in the sale were fresh to the market and 24 lots achieved over £1,000,000. Our unique 20/21 platform continues to attract a younger demographic, with 23% of all buyers millennials or younger.
Lucian Freud’s Ria, Naked Portrait led the sale (price realised: £11,810,000), followed by Jeff Koons’ Balloon Monkey (Blue) (price realised: £7,555,000) and David Hockney’s More Woldgate Timber, October 13th 2009 (priced realised: £4,638,000).
Surrealist works performed well, coinciding with the 100th anniversary of the Surrealist Manifesto. Three works by René Magritte saw competitive bidding, led by Le grand stylewhich sold for £2,581,000 (estimate: £1,000,000-1,500,000); Rogomelec by Leonor Fini achieved £907,200 (estimate: £450,000-650,000); and a new auction record was set for Léon Spilliaert whose Phare sur la digue sold for £982,800.
An auction record was also set for Sarah Sze’s Spell which sold for £756,000.
Other notable results included Annie Morris’ Stack 8, Viridian Green (price realised: £302,400, 68% above the high estimate) and Vilhelm Hammershøi’s Landskab. Sommer, Fra Ryet ved Farmuse (priced realised: £1,250,000, 79% above high estimate).
Katharine Arnold, Vice Chairman 20th/21st Century Art and Head of Post-War and Contemporary Art Europe, and Keith Gill, Vice Chairman 20th/21st Century Art and Head of Impressionist and Modern Art Europe at Christie’s, London: “This morning, Christie’s Frieze Week sales had an incredibly strong start with our Impressionist and Modern Art Works on Paper Sale achieving a sell-through rate of 91.2% by lot, and over 60% of lots out-performing estimates. The success then continued tonight in our Evening Sale, with sell-through rates of 89% by lot and 96% by value, and results up 83% from last October. We sourced fresh to the market works that resonated with collectors globally and priced them fairly. This evening’s results demonstrate that London draws international collectors attracted by the energy and diversity of what’s on offer during Frieze Week. We take pride in contributing to London’s vibrant arts ecosystem, and we are honoured to support Van Gogh: Poets and Lovers at the National Gallery. We look forward to tomorrow’s Impressionist and Modern Art and Post-War and Contemporary Art Day Sales, as well as the 20/21 Marquee Week in Paris, starting on 17 October.”
Main Image: Adrien Meyer, Global Head-Private Sales & Co-Chairman-Impressionist & Modern Art and tonight’s auctioneer selling Lucian Freud's 'Ria, Naked Portrait'
Anna Melnykova, "Palace of Labor (palats praci), architector I. Pretro, 1916", shot with analog Canon camera, 35 mm Fuji film in March 2022.
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